2023 Toyota GR Corolla Gets Hardcore 2-Seat, 304PS/400Nm Morizo Edition

The GR Corolla, Toyota’s newest AWD super-hatch has been through a sort of ‘RS’ track-ready treatment to create the Morizo Edition which adds lightness, power, and extra spicy aggro.

Earlier this year, Toyota surprised us all with the announcement of a hotted-up GR Corolla hatch, a car that we don’t get in Malaysia even in its more harmless base form, that sports all-wheel-drive and the G16E-GTS 1.6-litre 3-cylinder firecracker turbo-petrol from the GR Yaris.

A 2-seater GR Corolla?

Fun fact: The Morizo Edition is so named after CEO Akio Toyoda's racing alias the team used his personal feedback to fine tune the car over the standard GR Corolla.

It cuts kilograms everywhere it can, leading to a kerb weight of 1,440kg - a 30kg reduction over the standard GR Corolla. Much like the Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA’s feather-weighting programme, this Morizo Edition retains functional rear doors though it has had its rear seats removed. That’s right, it’s technically a 2-seater.

Sadly, Toyota has confirmed that only 200 examples of the car will be produced and allocated for sale in North America but has not disclosed how many will be sold in Japan. We suspect numbers won't be quite as limited.

GR Corolla Morizo Edition powertrain

Apart from the weight reduction, the Morizo Edition’s engine has been boosted a little to yield 400Nm of peak torque, up from 370Nm. This is funnelled through a 6-speed rev-matching manual transmission before being fed to all four wheels via Toyota’s GR-FOUR 4WD system with a Torsen limited slip differential on both the front and rear axle.

A set of Yokohama ADVAN Apex V601 tyres were deemed more than adequate for the standard GR Corolla but the Morizo Edition has been given Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres to wear on its 18-inch BBS forged aluminium wheels.

Engine power still tops out at 304PS, but the additional twist will definitely be felt in acceleration, aided by the modified gearbox that has been given tighter ratios for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd.

This angrier Morizo Edition could be a few tenths quicker than the 5.0 second century sprint benchmark set by the standard GR Corolla if only for its tighter gearing and sticky track-ready tyres. Around a circuit, however, is where that lightness and extra torque advantage would really come into play.

Will Malaysia get the GR Corolla?

There’s still no word yet on when (or if) Toyota will be starting to offer the GR Corolla anywhere besides Japan and North America. Clearly there is plenty of interest, even in a humble Southeast Asian nation such as Malaysia. Just look at how quickly the local allotment for the GR Yaris got snatched up.